Ruin

インダストリアル・ロックからダークウェイヴ、ゴシック、ノイズ・ミュージックといった要素をバリトン・ヴォーカルと不穏なリリックでシネマティックにブレンドするデトロイト発ポストパンク・トリオ、RITUAL HOWLSのニューアルバム。
前作『VIRTUE FALTERS』(2023年)以降、PAUL BANCELLがロサンゼルスへと移住し、本作は主にリモートにて制作。オールドスクール・レイヴ・カルチャーを取り入れ、インダストリアル、ゴシック、ポストパンクの繊細な融合を試みてきたトリオが更なる高みへと達しています。

On Virtue Falters, Ritual Howls made a significant leap forward, pairing their sweeping gestures with songwriting that was just as compelling. They continue their evolution on Ruin, delivering a set of even more tightly constructed songs that reestablish pounding, pulsing industrial beats as the backbone of their sound. From the first notes of their sixth album, its clear Ritual Howls mastery of atmosphere remains. The glowering twang of "Follow the Sun" conjures images of long black leather jackets and swirls of clove cigarette smoke, but it also boasts hooks that claw their way into listeners heads and stay there. Ruin is also a showcase for Paul Bancells increasingly commanding baritone: on "The Morning," his booming delivery matches the beaming synths that surround him as he paints fabulously doomy pictures of a "withering body wrapped in lace." Similarly, the albums combination of skeletal rhythms and gauzy synths creates the perfect backdrop for the black-hearted ruminations of "Beg the Question" and "Never Leaves You," where the refrain "After the first time/It never leaves you" becomes a mantra for the haunted. This sonic clarity lets Ritual Howls revisit their quintessential "death jangle" with "Bad Idea"s stomping beats, scrawled guitars, and vampiric mystery and venture into new territory like "Digging for My Spirit"s rave-inspired beats with equal ease. Not only does Ruin reveal the immediacy of Ritual Howls music; it also uncovers its depth. The album closes with "What Can I Say," a long, dark night of the soul that imbues Bancells fatalistic lyrics ("Were all going to the same place/And were all going the same way") with unexpected, and welcome, empathy. Surprises like these ensure Ruin never loses its grip on listeners attention -- and show that six albums into their career, Ritual Howls death rock is in rude health. ~ Heather Phares